Trademark Screening

Search engines are not designed for this sophisticated research. So, you can easily miss potential conflicts including marks that look or sound similar to yours. And with the global nature of commerce, screening your mark across multiple countries is crucial which requires specialized data sources. Screening proposed trademarks for identical matches to knock out previously registered marks is a smart first step. Loona Group’s online trademark screening makes it easy and affordable.

What is trademark screening? Trademark screening consists of an on-line search of US Federal, US State trademark registers, the Internet, and international marks in over 150 countries. It narrows a list of potential trademarks by knocking out names that are too similar to existing trademarks.

Why do I need to do trademark screening? A business, organization or individual obtains trademark rights by being the first in a given market either to use a mark or to file for the mark (provided that the mark is successfully registered). Once the trademark owner obtains such rights, the owner is entitled to stop newcomers from using similar marks in ways that are likely to cause confusion. Thus, anyone who contemplates adopting a new mark faces the risk that someone else may have already obtained rights to a similar mark for similar goods or services. A preliminary trademark screen is a critical step in creating a new mark.

What databases do you use? Tessera uses trademark databases available from Corsearch. These include the US Federal and US State trademark databases as well as over 150 trademark registers outside the US. These registers include: Australia, Austria, Benelux, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, European Community, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, India, International Register, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom, WIPO.

Does trademark screening provide an advantage? Yes. There are millions of trademarks in the world. Before you develop a new trademark, Tessera can evaluate your name’s uniqueness against many of the same databases an attorney will use when he or she orders a full search report. Quick and thorough preliminary trademark screening saves time and money, and increases the chances that the best names get to market.

How quickly do you turnaround a project?Usually within 2 or 3 working days.

How much does it cost?Screening and analysis costs are much lower than those provided by law firms, paralegals, or in-house employees. Screening costs begin at $150 for one name with each additional name costing $50 each if screening is on the US Federal and US State trademark registers only or $30 each if screening includes trademark registers outside the US.

Is there a report?Yes. Electronic reports containing all relevant identical and similar marks, classes of goods and services, descriptions of goods and services, registration and filing date, and the owner’s name are available.